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Immigrants and the economy in:

Louisville Metro Area

Immigrant Residents

64,678

Immigrant Share of Population

5.1%

Immigrant Taxes Paid (2016)

$431.9M

Immigrant Spending Power (2016)

$1.2B

Immigrant Entrepreneurs

3,308

Demographics

Similar to the United States as a whole, immigrants in most cities are more likely to be of working age—defined as being between the ages of 16 and 64—than the native-born population. This allows them to contribute to U.S. entitlement programs and also assume roles helping seniors as they age.

Workforce

Nationally, immigrants are 8.5 percent more likely to hold a graduate degree than the native-born. They are also more likely to have less than a bachelor’s degree. This allows immigrants to fill positions at the high and low ends of the skill spectrum. Without immigrants, these positions might remain unfilled, hurting local businesses and leading employers to relocate elsewhere. Here, we show the educational attainment of immigrants in this metro area and the five industries where they make up the largest share of workers.

Our research on the Great Lakes region also revealed that Louisville saw a 27.5% increase in U.S.-born working-class employment in manufacturing from 2000-2015. This increase took place in part because immigrants fill the higher skilled jobs that allow companies to stay local, as opposed to moving offshore.

Educational Attainment by Nativity, Age 25+

Workforce Education

Foreign-Born Population

Native-Born Population

Less Than High School

23.0%

10.8%

High School & Some College

44.6%

61.8%

Bachelor's Degree

17.1%

16.6%

Graduate Degree

15.4%

10.9%

Top Industries with Highest Share of Foreign-Born Workers

18.8%

Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing, and Hunting

11.3%

Construction

8.6%

Administrative Support

7.8%

Manufacturing

7.3%

Tourism, Hospitality, and Recreation

Share Workforce

Voting Power

Nationally, 20.4 million immigrants were eligible to vote in 2016—a group that could have a particularly important role in coming election cycles, given the narrow margins of victory that have decided presidential elections in recent years.

Eligible Immigrant Voters

23,146

Share Voting Power

Home Ownership

Immigrant families have long played an important role helping to build housing wealth in the United States. In recent decades, the more than 40 million immigrants collectively in the country increased U.S. housing wealth by $3.7 trillion. Much of this was possible because immigrants moved into neighborhoods once in decline, helping to revitalize local communities and make them more attractive to U.S.-born residents.

Between 2000 and 2015, the number of U.S.-born homeowners slipped 0.6 percent. But in the Great Lakes region, the number of foreign-born homeowners actually increased by 36.5 percent. See more data about cities in the Great Lakes region here.

Number of Homes Owned by Immigrants

10,982

Share Home Ownership

Taxes & Spending Power

Nationally, immigrants earned $1.4 trillion in 2016 and contributed $117.9 billion in state and local taxes and $261.7 billion in federal taxes. This left them with 1 trillion in spending power. Immigrants play an important role contributing to local economies both as consumers and taxpayers.

Immigrant Household Income

$1.6B

Taxes Paid

$431.9M

— State & Local Taxes

$146.4M

— Federal Taxes

$285.5M

Total Spending Power

$1.2B

Share Taxes & Spending Power

Entrepreneurship

In 2010, roughly one in 10 American workers with jobs at private firms were employed at immigrant-founded companies. Immigrants similarly play an important role as entrepreneurs in this metro area.

The number of immigrant entrepreneurs in the Great Lakes region grew by more than 120,000 between 2000 and 2015, while fewer U.S.-born residents took the risk of starting their own businesses. By 2015, more than one out of every 10 entrepreneurs in the region was foreign-born. Immigrants also made up more than one out of every five of the region’s Main Street business owners, operations that created nearly 240,000 working-class jobs for U.S.-born workers between 2000 and 2015 alone. Learn more in our report on the Great Lakes region.

How many immigrant entrepreneurs reside in this metro area?

3,308

How much more likely are immigrant residents to be entrepreneurs than native-born residents?

About NAE

New American Economy is a bipartisan research and advocacy organization fighting for smart federal, state, and local immigration policies that help grow our economy and create jobs for all Americans.
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